this one

Geez, what a shitty month I've had. It's been one shitstorm after another. It started with a simple yawn. I felt a sharp pain in my jaw, then my face went numb! Bells Palsy! Half my friggin' face was paralyzed. That's some scary shit right there. Not cool. I couldn't talk right or even eat right. Thank god, it only lasted about two-and-a-half weeks. I'm fine now, but, boy, was I trippin'. Then I got a really bad damn chest cold from some Bosnian chick at work! So I've been hacking and coughing up some serious cheese nonstop, and feeling weak AF. Hell, I'm still freaking sick! That is why my column is so late this month.

Then I got an eye-awakening dose of the politics of the Louisville music scene nowadays, and I gotta tell you, I am not happy with this crap at all. One of my bands had a show, and we got cornholed royally timespot-wise (even though we were the second band asked to be on the show). I'm not gonna sit here and lecture you on how great we are or all we've done in this scene, like some douche. I'm merely going to say, it's a damn shame what this music scene has become. When good songwriting, professionalism, experience, total pro gear, and a long long musical resume means absolutely nothing –it is a disgrace. However, what apparently IS important is how much one kisses the venue's brown-eye, OR how good of friends you are with the guy who books the shows at the venue you are trying to get in, OR how many people you can convince to purchase tickets in advance. So pucker up and prepare to taste that brown-eye, for that will be the only way you get any decent gigs these days, it seems. You could be a shitty ass guitarist on a $150 guitar but if you sell tickets or have plenty of friends to buy tickets, then you are good to go!

It breaks my heart to see the way things are now in my beloved city and music scene. The fact that we got screwed twice in a row at the same place, is BS. Especially when I have gone out of my way to help promote their shows, and our drummer provided the drums for all bands (meaning he had to be there a long-ass time!) on the show before this! Openers on local shows are for newbies and young'uns seeking to prove their worth. My band has paid our dues 20 times over, in several well-known local bands, both originals and cover bands. Hell, our drummer toured for a year and a half in a Guns N' Roses Tribute band! So yeah, it was a disrespectful thing to do to seasoned musicians who had done nothing BUT support that venue. Maybe that is the issue. We are too seasoned? Gee, I really can't help it that I have aged. Is that reason to punish someone who has put in more than their share of the work? If anything, I think all of us in this band have aged very gracefully.

I put our music/live performance head to head against any bands in this city. We don't get older, we get better. But the venue said that they will make it up to us, so I guess that is a t least something. The guy has always seemed to be a good dude, so I'll just have to wait and see what happens. I hope he does the right thing.

Then, I lost a good friend and my main guitar tech –all because he fell in with the wrong crowd, who are pillheads. Pills! More grief over pills. I do not get that shit. I do not see the allure. If you know something is incredibly addictive, then don't freaking do them! It's pretty simple. Dumbasses.

Maybe I have just grown up, and decided I want good positive things in life.

I want to be around good, positive people. No flaky bastards.

I am not the same guy I used to be. I am a much much better human being. I treat people like I would want to be treated. I try to be fair, and do the right things at all times. I do not lie.

And I have been rewarded for this. I have a halfway-decent job. I have more money than I have ever had. I have an amazing arsenal of guitar gear. I play in two badass bands with really good guys as bandmates, and we are going to be opening for Great White/The Bulletboys/Enuff Znuff on October 16 at The Mercury Ballroom, so I'm excited about that. And I have a pretty good GF, too, finally. And very soon I will be heading down to New Orleans/Gulf Shores again! We have a wicked condo right on the beach for a week.

Yeah, things are looking up. And whatever happens in life, I will know I did the right thing in the end. Because that is the type of person that I am now.

But if you mess with me –I will still F**k You Up!!!

Peace out, beetchez.

The Metal Grapevine

Louder Than Life Lineup!!

Well, it's here! This is this years LTL lineup Folks. Enjoy. I will see you there! I've covered these historic shows from the beginning and I wouldn't miss it for nothing. Three days though! I hope my old ass can deal with all that walking. It's going to be rough!

Friday, September 28 Avenged Sevenfold, Limp Bizkit, Breaking Benjamin, Slash/Myles Kennedy, Seether, Black stone cherry, Skillet, Underoath, Suicidal Tendencies, Red Sun Rising, Tremonti, Bad Wolves, Turnstile, Jelly Roll, Hyro The Hero, Badflower, Islander and True Villians.

Saturday, September 29 Godsmack, Five Finger Death Punch, Shinedown, Bush, Bullet for My Valentine, Body Count, Pop Evil, Sevendust, GWAR, Dance Gavin Dance, From Ashes To New, Sick Puppies, Cane Hill. Bad Omens, Blacktop Mojo, Awake at Last, Stone Broken and The Jacks.

Sunday, September 30 Nine Inch nails, Deftones, Ice Cube, Primus, Billy Idol, Action Bronson, Clutch, Asking Alexandria, Yelawolf, The Sword, Glassjaw, The Fever 333, Monster Magnet, Spirit Animal, The dose, and The Brenon Sound.

Rip Vinnie Paul:

On June 22, former Pantera/Hellyeah drummer Vinnie Paul joined his brother Dimebag in heaven. Vinnie was waaay too young to have gone out like this. They say he died in his sleep. I hope he wasn't in pain or anything. What a drummer! My god, could Vinnie play. I had the supreme honor of opening for him and his band Hellyeah at the Mercury Ballroom a few years back and it was amazing. They even gave our band Krosjoint props live onstage, too, when they didn't have to either! Talk about cool guys! I remember seeing Pantera play at the Zodiac Club in the early 90's on the Cowboys From Hell tour. There was only about 60 people there, but I was one of them! It was awesome and a historic concert in Louisville history too. I do know one thing, Vinnie and Dime are reunited and rockin' their asses off in heaven now. R.I.P., Vin.

Interview With An 80'S Metal Guitar Legends Son (You Would Shit If You Knew Who), And Louisville Native, Les Paul, Of The Band Van Waylon:

Due to legal issues (I do not want to get Les in trouble), I am not allowed to mention the name of his father or the name of his father's band. But I can give you a few hints. His father's name rhymes with Vic Starrs, and the LA band he played in was rude, crude and notorious partiers. I had pics of his dad on my walls as a kid, so this is kinda special for me! Once in a rock magazine, I saw a picture of his dad holding a picture of his newborn son, and saying that the boy was named Les Paul. I thought to myself. What a cool name! Now I am am interviewing the guy! Neat! So let's do this...

What's up, man! I have to say, I am honored to have heavy metal royalty's bloodline appearing in my longtime column. It must have been quite a ride being the son of a guitar legend. Tell us a little what it was like growing up with a rockstar as a dad? That was in California right? And how in the world did you end up in Kentucky?

Les Paul –It was a pretty normal childhood. All three of my parents were hard working people. My pop did his thing as a professional musician. My step-dad owned an automotive repair shop. My mom was a manager at a grocery store. Yes, I was born and raised in Southern California. My step-dad was born and raised in Jeffersontown, Kentucky. He came into our lives when I was five. All those years I heard about how one day he was going to retire and move back to Kentucky. While his repair shop was doing really good business, he bought a house here in Kentucky to one day retire to. I moved into that house back in ‘98 and then my parents retired and moved back here in 2002.

Eddy –As a guitarist yourself, did your dad inspire you/teach you any guitar, or did you pick it up all on your own?

Les Paul –He never pushed me to play. On my thirteenth birthday he asked me what I wanted and I said I wanted a guitar. He gave me a 70's Squire Strat. I'm pretty much self-taught but all three of my parents were musically influential just because of the music they would have playing in the house, car, or garage.

Eddy –Tell us about your band Van Waylon! I have not heard you guys n' gals yet, but I have heard good things! Describe your music and how you all got together. Tell us about your bandmates too!

Les Paul –Van Waylon is actually the brainchild of Mike Fulkerson. He had this name in his head when he was still a teen. He always wanted to put together a band that can go from Van Halen to Waylon Jennings. He formed the band in 2007. I joined in 2009. We are pretty much a cover band and we play the local watering holes in the Louisville area. We do put some interesting twists on some covers and we also mash some things up like John Anderson's song "Swingin'" with LED Zeppelin's "Wanton Song" played underneath it. Both songs are in G, so why not? We just try to be different than the other bands. Mike Fulkerson plays guitar as well. He and I are like two peas in a pod. We are always scheming on something new to play or a different arrangement on a song we already play. We also build guitars from scratch.

Glenn Zelch (Fluffy) has been in the band since the beginning. Always singing, but he also was the drummer in the beginning. He's also played bass on a few songs in the early days. He probably one of the funniest humans I've ever met. He also has a very unique voice and in my humble opinion, I think it's one of the best voices around. Mystee our bass player joined the band about five years ago. She was just seventeen when she auditioned. She really did her homework. We asked everyone who auditioned to learn three of our songs. Mystee took it upon herself and learned about 85% of our entire show. She has a great voice as well and she does sing lead on a few of our songs. David Williams, our drummer, just joined the band a couple weeks ago. He has been in and around Louisville's music scene for decades. He was with Big Rock Show for sixteen years and anyone who has seen him play knows he's top notch. We are lucky to have him. Y'all need to come out to a Van Waylon show.

Eddy –What kind of guitar equipment to do favor? Les Paul's? Just kidding mang. Seriously though, what does the son of a rock legend play on these days?

Les Paul –I have a few guitars that I use live. We play with a few different tunings so we carry quite a few guitars with us to a show. One of my main guitars is one that I made. It's covered in hand-stitched leather like Waylon Jennings guitar but the black and white pattern is like Eddie Van Halen's circles guitar. It has a pair of Grover Jackson wound P-90's and a Floyd Rose. Pretty fun guitar. The amp I use is an Egnater Renegade 2X12 combo loaded with Eminence CV75's. The tone that I was wanting wasn't so much of a guitar tone but more like Jon Lord's B-3 running through a pissed-off Marshall.

Eddy –Do you have a good wholesome family story for us regarding you and your dad? I bet you have some doozies! Don't hold back on us!

Les Paul –If I told ya, I'd have to kill ya. Actually there's not much to tell. When he's home, he's just pop. Like with anyone else we try to leave work at work.

Eddy –What is the goal of Van Waylon, and when is the next time you all are playing so we can get some of my readers out there to support?

Les Paul –We just plan on having more fun.

July 6, Smyrna Inn, July 11, Galt House, July 28, Louisville Billiards Club, August 4, The County Line,

August 11, private party, September 8, Two Lane Tavern, September 22, The planet.

Thanks for your time Les, and I'm looking forward to meeting you face to face. You seem like one helluva dude.

Here is a live video of Van Waylon.

Jack Russell's Great White/Bulletboys/Enuff Znuff Coming To The Merc On October 16, And My Band Is Opening!

Wow! This is a badass 80's lineup right here! I'm a serious fan of Jack Russell's voice, and of the Bulletboys, and I like songs by Enuff Znuff too! So I'm very stoked that my band Year Of The Gun is opening. I wanna see all of you perople there early to support us local guys! In my opinion, Jack Russell's voice is one of the most underrated voices in rock! To prove so, check out this video of Jack performing some Led Zeppelin. I've heard live Robert Plant before, and he never sounded this good live.

Phil Anselmo Returns! With His New Band The Illegals. On Sunday Sept 23 At Diamond Concert Hall:

This should be an interesting show. Don't miss openers Rebels and Devils.

Judas Priest/ Deep Purple Coming To Riverbend On August 21:

Jesus Palomino what a lineup. I've never seen DP and Priest is my all time favorite band. I gotta go to this. I will miss Glenn if he can't make it to this show, but I still gotta support the juggernaut that is Priest.

Marylyn Manson Coming To Louevil:

Sunday August 5 at Louisville Palace. Never was a fan. Fella's, there will be lots of cute goth ladies there. Here's some live Manson for ya.

Bourbon And Beyond Lineup:

Located at Champions Park, just like Louder Than Life, is Bourbon and Beyond, another festival that sounds like a lot of fun. It's on Saturday Sept 22 and Sunday Sept 23. Last year wasn't really my style of music, but this year looks pretty darn good! Friday it's Brian Setzers Rockabilly Riot, John Mayer, Lenny Kravitz, Sheryl Crow and others. Saturday features Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters w/ Sting, Blackberry Smoke, Gov't Mule, Counting Crows and others. I really may have to cover this!! Yum, thinking about the food!! Ha.

The Jeremy Wade Noe Metalfest 2018 Lineup (located At 3850 Beechgrove Rd Shepherdsville Ky 40165) :

Allen Ashbaugh's annual outdoor metal bash is coming up and I wish I didn't have a wedding to attend or I woulda been attending and playing that MF as usual. Here is the lineup! It's all ages too!

Friday,August 3 Artwork for the Blind, Ohlm, Goodfellas, Hidden Foundation, Lethean, Corpus Malum and Kur.

Saturday, August 4 Descention (last show ever), Granshaw, Lurker at The Threshold, Societys Plague, Creature Of Exile, Inner Decay, Eulogy In Blood, Stout and Two Pump Chump.

The fucking Panetra Cover Band is coming to The Merc on July 27:

Now this should be a fun fun show! I'm gonna try to make this one! Check them out!

New Band Alert –Jimi Patrix Review:

I got to play a show with these talented musicians lately and they sounded good. Good vocals! Andy Russ always impressed me on guitar. Such a quiet guy, but, man, does that dude destroy on guitar!

Jimi Patrix is a band that was conceived two years ago by vocalist/guitarist Jimbo McCubbins and lead guitarist Andy Russ. Music was written but there was no full band until just recently. Two months ago to be exact! Filling out the lineup on bass is Tim Russ and on Drums is Craig Edford. Jimi Patrix is an acid flashback into the good old days of psychadelic rock a la Pink Floyd with a dash of Tool thrown in for taste. Little did I know" is about Jimbo's car accident a few years back. Dude got f**ked up pretty bad and had to go through some bad, painful shit to get back to normal. He suffered and that's what the song is about.

I like the clean guitar watery effect used. Yeah, this is pretty trippy. Makes me wanna go drop some blotter. The lyrics of Jimbo McCubbins are very good, and deep. Well thought out and placed lyrics, with lovely placement of syllables. Impressive, Jimbo! It's been a long time since I've heard Jim sing, and I must say, he has come a long long way from the days of yore. I like the volume fades and bends Andy does mid-song. The drums and bass sound good but it's clear the main focus here is the laidback melodic vocals, and neat trippy beautiful guitarwork. I love the sound of Earlygrayce studios with Jordan Haynes. I also record there and will not go elsewhere!

I like how the vocals were mixed with both high and low voices. Sounds fantastic. Killer guitar tone. This is good stuff! Catchy vocal melodies. Kinda reminds me of A Perfect Circle or something like that! Layered pretty guitars over subtle melodies.

"Letting Go" has a Toolish feel to it, and the guitar tones is dialed back and a bit retro/easygoing. Usually Andy is shredding on some metal leads, so this is a bit different seeing him play in this slower/laidback light. Intro Piano riffs worked well also. This tune almost has a bluesy jazzy feel to it somehow, or maybe I am just delusional from being sick as f**k for the last week-and-a-half, and don't know what the hell I'm saying! It's different and fresh. As a critic and music columnist, it gets very old. hearing band after band screaming and growling and sounding like they are taking a massive dump the morning after visiting Indy's Spicy Fried Chicken at 1 a.m. I welcome the chance to review such talented original music created by my fellow Louisville musicians. Jim's vocals are better than ever. It's emotional trippy rock with deep, well thought out lyrics and actual meaning behind the music. I like it. And I'm not even a fan of Pink Floyd, Jim's main influence!

"Doing 99" is much more of a rocker song. It has a Godsmack feel to it. Simple and chunky guitars. This is to be the band's single I was told. Cool scream by Jim. This one is way more uptempo and rockin'. The drums of Craig Edford are killin' in this one. Nice. This is a good single and one most people could get into. I like the chorus lyrics and they are memorable! That is the key! Keeping MF'ers humming your shit! And of all three songs, this one does that the most. I almost didn't review this because I feel like complete doody, but I'm glad I sucked it up and covered this anthemic energetic endeavor by a mucho talented band of Louisville music veterans. Check out Jimi Patrix at a venue near you soon! I'd play with these cats again in a heartbeat. Great guys, great band, great recording.

Fire Department Reunion Coming On October 13 At Mercury Ballroom:

Those crazy oldsters never give up and are coming back one more time to rock yer asses off. Opening the show is the amazing young band Doppelganger, so be sure to be early for those cats! Fire department is Louisville history! Words cannot describe the times I've had partying with these guys back in the heyday of of the Toy Tiger days. Pure debauchery. Be there!

Metallica Is Coming To Louisville –In 2019:

Yup, it's true, March 9^th at The Yum Center in 2019. My dumbass saw the announcement and without thinking thought it was this March. Shit, that's a long way off! I might be dead by then. One of the band members might be dead. Well, this should be pretty frickin' cool when it finally comes down. Knowing my luck, I'll plug the crap outta it for over a year and get the flu the night before the show in 2019. This will be a hot ticket when it happens, so you might want to secure your tickets when they finally go on sale. It's been a few years since I've seen them. Here is a bit of Louisville Rock History for ya! I saw them in 1986 at Cardinal Stadium with Ozzy. And get this –Metallica got booed horribly. Nobody knew who they were, except me. And the crowd was all worked up for Ozzy. They knew not what they did.

Lmn Bad Humor Report –Sometimes You Just Have A Bad Day:

The Faceless Comes! Don't Miss This Badass Band On July 10 At Diamond Concert Hall!

Five Finger Death Punch/Breaking Benjamin/Nothing More/Bad Wolves Coming To Riverbend On August 28:

Another cool show right here. I dig FFDP, BB and Nothing More. That singer for Nothing More is really good. Attend!

Musician Of The Month –This Month Our Feature Is King Of Vice Tricks!

Be sure to read about this interesting fella!

New Video Alert –Comess:

New Video Alert –Incursion502:

The Smashing Pumpkins coming to KFC YUM! Center on Saturday July 21:

My god do I hate this band. Horrible and whiney beyond reason. But I guess some people like it. Have fun!

The Metallica Tribute Returns!

The Four Horsemen return to the Mercury Ballroom on Saturday August 11. Be there and experience the sounds of Metallica.

Krosjoint Returns-Seeking Lead Guitarist:

I have reformed the stoner groove metal band Krosjoint.I do admit we were strong enough to turn goat piss into gasoline! Things are going well, but we are still looking for a lead guitarist so if interested, give me a shout. We have abadass gear, a good place to prac, and some killer music! EDDYMETAL1@aol.com

Louisville Music News Live

Yeah, I've made this up to feature you mofo's in all your glory! So let's see some videos from you musicians, old or new! If it's good, it might be featured! Send to Eddymetal1@aol.com. But it must be on youtube!

THIS MONTH is dedicated solely to Metalfest 7 bands! This ones for you, Allen Ashbaugh! I just wish my old ass could be on the bill this year too, but I have a wedding to attend. And there is no getting out of my niece's big day. My sister would kick my ass!

LMN Live –Ohlm:

LMN Live –Granshaw:

LMN Live –Descention:

LMN Live –Corpus Malum:

LMN Live –Two Pump Chump:

LMN Live –Hidden Foundation:

LMN Live –Lurker At The Threshold:

LMN Live –Societys Plague:

LMN Live –Artwork For The Blind:

LMN Live –Creature Of Exile:

Upcoming Shows

The Bourbon Hall (New Venue Downtown)

Wednesday, July 11 Keeping it local series –The Decades.

Thursday, July 12 –10 Years.

Sunday, July 15 –A Murder Burlesque Tour.

Saturday, July 21 –Raelyn Nelson (Willie Nelson's Granddaughter)

Wednesday, August 1 –Keeping it local series –Kevin Cummings Band, Mandy Mcmillan, Frankie Moody.

Thursday, September 6 –David Allen Coe.

Friday, September 28 –Blue Oyster Cult.

Brewskee's

Saturday, July 14 –Mooseknuckle.

Diamonds St Matthews

Friday, July 6 –Hundred Proof Mojo.

Diamond Pub Concert Hall

Tuesday, July 10 –The Faceless w/ Lorna Shore, Dyscarnate, Nomvdic and Latt.

Saturday, July 21 –Light The Torch w/ Guerilla Red, Lethean, Era Of Machines and LC.

Sunday, July 22 –Alterbeast w/ Created To Kill and Artwork For The Blind.

Saturday, August 4 –CKY w/ Slaves, Royal Thunder and Awaken Am I.

Sunday, August 19 –The Dead Daisies w/ Dizzy Reed's Hookers and Blow.

Sunday, September 23 –Phil Anselmo and The Illegals w/ King Parrot and Rebels And Devils.

Headliners Music Hall

Sunday, July 8 –Incursion502, Thomas Medicine, Ohlm and Vice Tricks. 7 P.M.

Saturday, June 23 –Stagecoach Inferno, Call Me Bronco and Bottom Sop.

J Town Eagles Club 3903

Friday, July 27 –Wisecracker.

The Jeremy Wade Noe Metalfest 2018 Lineup (located At 3850 Beechgrove Rd Shepherdsville Ky 40165) :

It's all ages too!

Friday, August 3 –Artwork for the Blind, Ohlm, Goodfellas, Hidden Foundation, Lethean, Corpus Malum and Kur.

Saturday, August 4 –Descention (last show ever), Granshaw, Lurker at The Threshold, Societys Plague, Creature Of Exile, Inner Decay, Eulogy In Blood, Stout and Two Pump Chump.

Kingfish (Jeffersonville)

Saturday, July 7 –Mad Alice. 8 P.M.

Friday, July 13 –Hundred Proof Mojo.

Kingfish Zorn

Wednesday, July 25 –The Wilson Brothers

Mercury Ballroom

Saturday, July 21 –Turn the page –A Tribute To Bob Segar.

Friday, July 27 –The F**king Pantera Cover Band.

Saturday, August 4 –Velcro Pygmies.

Tuesday, August 7 –Against Me!

Saturday, August 11 –The Four Horsemen (Metallica Tribute)

Saturday, August 25 –Lift The Medium performs Chris Cornell.

Friday, September 21 –Hairbangers Ball.

Tuesday, September 28 –Fozzy.

Saturday, October 13 –Fire Dept Reunion w/ Doppelganger.

Tuesday, October 16 –Jack Russell's Great White w/ The Bulletboys, Enuff Znuff and Year Of The Gun.

Nirvana

Saturday, July 7 –Gravel&Spiders, Banshee Child, Juke Joint Revival and Carl Stuck.

Friday, August 17 –Hannan, Julius and Manic Methed.

The Shop (Brandenburg)

Saturday, July 21 –Stone The Crow.

Spectators

Saturday, July 7 –Tameless.

Saturday, July 14 –Mad Alice.

Third Street Dive

Saturday, July 21 –Julius and Hannan.

Tk's Pub

Saturday, July 28 –The Wilson Brothers.

Trixies

Tuesday, July 24 –Beasto Blanco.

Wednesday, July 25 –Jinger w/ Incursion, Comess, Seccumb To Demise and Pull Pin Throw.

Saturday, July 28 –Sounds Like A Lawsuit, Batwizard, Fallen From Nowhere and Prey for Maria.

Tuesday, July 24 –Beasto Blanco w/ Sinful Lilly, day, Of Ruin, Memory and N.W.

Monday, July 30 –Powerglove w/ Last Of the Dodo and The Prodepressants.

Saturday, August 11 –Surviving Thalia Reunion.

Saturday, August 25 –Gideon w/ Polaris, Nothing Left, Varials, Chamber and G.F.

Friday, August 31 –Abigail williams, Ghost Bath, Wolvhammer, Cryptic Hymn, SC.